A little late on that assessment, unfortunately

Published 1:51 pm, Tuesday, December 13, 2016

Photo: Matthew Otero, STF

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Costly military programs that have been ditched in the 2000s

Shares of Lockheed Martin fell Monday, Dec. 12, 2016, after President-elect Donald Trump tweeted that making F-35 fighter planes is too costly and that he will cut "billions" in costs for military purchases. Since 2000, the various military branches have pitched and shuttered various projects that went over budget. Keep going to see which of those programs bit the bullet and how much they cost the taxpayer.

Launched in 2003, the U.S. Army had hoped the program would lead to the development and production of ground sensors, unmanned aerial vehicles, unmanned ground vehicles and eight manned vehicles. In April 2009, President Barack Obama and Secretary of Defense Robert Gates announced plans to cut funding for the project, citing new shifts in military strategy. A month later, the Department of Defense cut the $18.1 billion program, moving parts of it into the new Ground Combat Vehicle Program.

In 1991, Boeing Rotorcraft Systems partnered with the Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation to develop an attack and reconnaissance helicopter that would replace the AH-1 Cobra and OH-58 Kiowa. In 2004, the U.S. Army announced plans to cancel the $7.9 billion project, citing the expense needed to upgrade the helicopters for increased survivability against anti-aircraft threats.

NASA, in conjunction with multiple private and government entities, sought to develop a satellite system that would provide data on global environment conditions, including the weather, atmosphere, oceans, land and near-space environment. Ballooning costs and development trouble delayed the launch, with the White House finally cancelling the $5.8 billion project in 2010.

In 1996, the U.S. Air Force commissioned Boeing, Northrop Grumman and Lockheed Martin to develop an airborne laser platform. The resulting aircraft was the Boeing YAL-1, a modified Boeing 747-400F equipped with a high-energy laser. Despite some successful testing, then-U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates recommended the project to be cancelled because the costs to operate the aircraft were unfeasible and the strength of the laser itself needed to be 20 to 30 times more powerful to be effective in a real-world situation. In 2010, the Air Force did not request additional funding for the $5.2 billion project.

The U.S. National Reconnaissance Office commissioned Boeing to develop and produce next-generation spy satellites in 1999. Unfortunately for Boeing, ballooning costs forced the NRO to shift the program to Lockheed Martin. Because the project is classified, it's unclear if the $4 billion project was actually cancelled. Four of the five satellites were launched between 2010 and 2016.

In 2005, the Department of Defense commissioned Lockheed Martin, AgustaWestland and Bell Helicopter to produce a new transport helicopter for the "Marine One" fleet. Engineering issues and ballooning costs sparked outcry and calls for the project to be cancelled in 2007. By 2009, President Barack Obama and Secretary of Defense Robert Gates asked that the $3.7 billion project be put on hold or cancelled outright. By April of that year, the Department of Defense did not include the VH-71 in their funding requests.

In 1996, the U.S. Marine Corps commissioned General Dynamics to develop and construct a replacement for the '70s-era AAV-7A1 Assault Amphibious Vehicle. The Marines wanted the EFV to be faster, stronger and boast superior firepower. Fifteen years later, then U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates called for the troubled $3.3 billion project to be cancelled in favor of retrofitting the existing line of AAVs.

In the early 2000s, the U.S. Department of Defense in conjunction with the Air Force proposed an idea to develop and construct a communications network to further their network-centric warfare doctrine. After waffling on picking a contractor to work with for several years, then Secretary of Defense Robert Gates publicly recommended the $3.2 billion project be cancelled in 2009.

In the mid-'90s, the U.S. Army commissioned General Dynamics and United Defense to develop and construct a next-general howitzer platform in an attempt to replace the M109A6 Paladin and M992 Field Artillery Ammunition Support Vehicle. In 2001, then U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld recommended the $2.2 billion project be cancelled due to costs and ineffectiveness.

In 2003, the U.S. Air Force commissioned Northrop Grumman to develop a new airborne control center to replace Boeing's E-3 Sentry, the E-4B and RC-135. Engineering difficulties and shifting goals eventually caused the $1.9 billion project to be shelved in 2007 when the USAF neglected to add the aircraft to their budget proposal.

In the early to mid-'90s, the U.S. Department of Defense launched the Space Based Infrared System program to improve their missile defense and battlespace surveillance operations. Ballooning costs and congressional inquiries resulted in the project being cancelled and later folded into another initiative in 2001.

In 1994, the U.S. Navy and Special Operations Command commissioned Northrop Grumman to develop a submersible transport for special forces that could be launched from larger submarines. In April 2006, USSOCOM and the Navy told Grumman they were terminating the $600 million project.

Following the 2004 cancellation of the RAH-66 Comanche, the U.S. Army awarded Bell Helicopter a contract to produce something that could replace its OH-58D Kiowa Warrior. Bell came up with the 2-man ARH-70 Arapho. Unfortunately, after a disastrous flight test and ballooning costs, the Army opted to terminate the $500 million program in 2008.

In 2004, the U.S. Army and Navy, in search of a more modern reconnaissance aircraft, awarded a contract to Lockheed Martin and their proposal to modify the existing Gulfstream G450 aircraft. After some engineering issues stalled the development process, the Department of Defense cancelled the $400 million program in 2006.

In 2001, the U.S. Navy announced a new program to develop a new warship that would replace its Ticonderoga-class missile cruisers. Some theorized the program would call for some ships to use the Zumwalt hull. Regardless, President Barack Obama called for the $200 million project's cancellation in 2010.

In 2006, the U.S. Air Force announced it had awarded Boeing a contract to develop a replacement for the HH-60G helicopter. Boeing's developed the HH-47, a variant of the CH-47 Chinook. In 2009, the USAF cancelled the $200 million project outright after some pushback by the U.S. Government Accountability Office two years earlier.

In 2006, the U.S. Air Force launched a program to find a new type of bomber that could "loiter" around a battlefield and respond to targets as they appeared by 2018. Two years later, Boeing and Lockheed Martin announced they would team up to produce an aircraft that fit the USAF's needs. In 2009, then Secretary of Defense Robert Gates announced NGB would not make it by 2018, and the two companies shuttered the $100 million project. It has since been superseded by the Long Range Strike Bomber Program.

Trump's Twitter sentiment has been shared by officials for at least a decade when in 2006 when the Government Accountability Office caught wind of Lockheed Martin producing planes before design testing had been completed.

The more interesting part is what exactly our future president will do if he does nix the program. Currently, the plane has consumed nearly $400 billion due to engineering and design difficulties. Starting over from scratch is one idea, but that would also be incredibly expensive.

"If we cancel it now, it'll take at least a decade and hundreds of billions of dollars more to develop a whole new set of fighter jets from scratch, judging by the last 50 years of aircraft development," Foxtrotalpha blogger Michael Ballaban wrote.

Chron.com has compiled a list of costly military projects that bit the bullet before they could be realized in the gallery above.